News

Customer relationship management (CRM)

June 25, 2019 25 Jun'19
Big companies face extinction unless they use IT better

Better use of IT could add £100bn to the British economy, says a CBI report into UK big business
June 19, 2019 19 Jun'19
How AirAsia streamlined its customer service

Integrating multiple customer touch points with Salesforce has enabled Asia’s leading low-cost carrier to shorten waiting time and improve customer service
June 18, 2019 18 Jun'19
Tableau sticking to data mission under Salesforce

Tableau President and CEO Adam Selipsky told the company’s European user conference in Berlin that Salesforce acquisition will not affect its mission of “seeing and understanding data”
June 10, 2019 10 Jun'19
Salesforce buys Tableau to add self-service analytics to CRM

Salesforce is set to buy business intelligence data visualisation pioneer Tableau as it seeks to amplify its customer analytics capability

June 10, 2019 10 Jun'19
Whittard spills the tea about its use of technology

CFO and IT manager of British hot beverages brand Whittard explains the firm’s recent investment in technology ahead of the business’s expansion into China
June 06, 2019 06 Jun'19
Co-op pushes to make customer care teams more co-operative

The Co-op operates in market segments ranging from funeral care to food, and its customer service strategy was disparate until it adopted Salesforce
May 16, 2019 16 May'19
How Open University went from bespoke IT to vanilla SAP

It’s hard convincing users their business processes are a dud. But this is what Chris Youles, chief information officer of the Open University, needed to do to transform the organisation
April 24, 2019 24 Apr'19
SAP Q1 2019 results: 400 more S/4 Hana sign-ups, €1.5bn in cloud

SAP’s first-quarter 2019 financial results indicate cloud revenue at 26% of total, and 400 new customers for S/4 Hana. Senior executive losses, restructure and Qualtrix acquisition cost bite into profit
April 07, 2019 07 Apr'19
APL Logistics fast-tracks global shipments with cloud

The Singapore-based supply chain firm has moved its transport management system and other business applications to the cloud, while keeping its ‘secret sauce’ on-premise
March 29, 2019 29 Mar'19
Middle East countries accelerate quantum computing research

Gulf countries must invest in quantum computing research to ensure they continue to to remain digital pioneers

March 27, 2019 27 Mar'19
Salesforce opens AI research outfit in Singapore

Cloud-based software giant Salesforce will train up to 100 postgraduate students over three years in artificial intelligence technology
March 15, 2019 15 Mar'19
StepChange uses Pegasystems to power digital efficiency drive

Charity StepChange, which helps people manage debt problems, has developed a modern IT system to help double the number of people it can support
March 12, 2019 12 Mar'19
Nationwide uses natural language processing to discover what annoys customers

SAS has run a proof of concept at building society Nationwide, using artificial intelligence and natural language processing to determine how to improve customer correspondence
February 25, 2019 25 Feb'19
SAP Malaysia MD Duncan Williamson talks up the ‘experience economy’

In a world where consumer experience can make or break a business, companies need to continuously reinvent themselves to stay relevant
February 22, 2019 22 Feb'19
Facebook planned to spy on Android phone users, internal emails reveal

Facebook planned to use its Android app to track the location of its customers and to allow advertisers to send political advertising and invites to dating sites to ‘single’ people, confidential documents show
February 19, 2019 19 Feb'19
IT Priorities 2019: UK investment intent for AI intensifies, SaaS applications mature beyond CRM

AI continues to strengthen as a focus for IT systems buyers in the UK, according to this year’s Computer Weekly/TechTarget IT Priorities survey, while cloud applications are maturing beyond CRM
February 15, 2019 15 Feb'19
Lucidworks CEO talks up ‘data experiences’

Will Hayes discusses Lucidworks’ Asian expansion plans, as well as efforts to help enterprises deliver rich data experiences for employees and customers through AI-augmented search engines
January 29, 2019 29 Jan'19
Australian government turns to Rimini Street for software support

A slew of Australian government agencies have switched out SAP and Oracle maintenance contracts for third-party support services
January 29, 2019 29 Jan'19
IT leaders grapple with workforce skills gap as they deploy AI and digital technology

Organisations will have to find new ways of reskilling their workforce as they get to grips with artificial intelligence and other digital technologies. CIOs also need to keep their skills updated if they are to succeed
January 29, 2019 29 Jan'19
SAP FY 2018: Cloud revenue nears €5bn, 10,500 customers for S/4 Hana

SAP’s full-year 2018 results show cloud revenue at 20% of the total, which was €24.7bn, while the fourth quarter saw 1,000 customers added to its flagship S/4 Hana
January 01, 2019 01 Jan'19
SAP user group’s Cooper: Indirect licensing progress welcome but slow

SAP UK&I User Group chair Paul Cooper on the state of play between SAP and users: sanguine about end of ECC6; S/4 adoption growth steady, indirect licensing still an issue; and C/4 remains unknown
December 31, 2018 31 Dec'18
Top 10 business applications stories of 2018

The steady modernisation of ERP systems, as they edge to the cloud and are complemented by new-generation customer software, was markedly evident this year. And blockchain and AI are making inroads
December 12, 2018 12 Dec'18
Christmas charity appeal increases donations with cloud-based comms

St Martin-in-the-Fields Charity is using a pop-up cloud contact centre from supplier Sesui to help run its annual Christmas appeal in partnership with the BBC
November 20, 2018 20 Nov'18
How Singapore Airlines is flying the digital skies

Top Asian carrier Singapore Airlines has been building a digital foundation to fend off potential disruption, but it is not just the IT team that is leading the charge
November 12, 2018 12 Nov'18
UKISUG 2018: Upswing for S/4 Hana, C/4 Hana unknown to 39%

UK and Ireland SAP User Group discloses research showing steady rise in S/4 Hana implementation, but C/4 Hana is still an unknown quantity
November 08, 2018 08 Nov'18
Privacy International files GDPR complaint against Oracle

General Data Protection Regulation complaints against Oracle and six other companies filed with Information Commissioner’s Office
November 01, 2018 01 Nov'18
SAP’s Atzberger vaunts front to back office capability

Alex Atzberger, president, SAP Customer Experience, recently went through the company’s customer-focused software strategy with Computer Weekly
October 31, 2018 31 Oct'18
Triumph Motorcycles kick-starts changes with high-tech HR

The Leicestershire-based motorcycle company is deploying IT systems to give customers and its own staff a ‘premium brand experience’
October 30, 2018 30 Oct'18
How Avanade keeps pace with Microsoft and the market

Systems integrator Avanade has had to adapt to Microsoft’s evolution into an “ecosystem platform” that includes open-source software
October 24, 2018 24 Oct'18
Oracle Open World 2018: CEO Mark Hurd says SAP ERP customers will defect

Oracle co-CEO Mark Hurd opined at Open World that SAP ECC6 customers will defect, in some measure, to Oracle in preference to S/4 Hana
October 23, 2018 23 Oct'18
Software suites will dominate the business applications market

Oracle co-CEO Mark Hurd contends that having a common user interface and the ability to support data flows across a business are key capabilities that will spur the dominance of software suites over time
October 18, 2018 18 Oct'18
SAP Q3 2018: Cloud revenue up 39%

SAP’s Q3 2018 results show cloud revenue now at 22% of total and indicate momentum. S/4 Hana customers number 9,500
October 10, 2018 10 Oct'18
SAP Customer Experience Live 2018: SAP steps up C/4 Hana efforts

SAP has used its Customer Experience Live conference in Barcelona to flesh out its C/4 Hana offer
September 26, 2018 26 Sep'18
Dreamforce 18: Benioff calls for ‘inclusive capitalism’

At Dreamforce 2018 in San Francisco, Salesforce founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff argued for what he called “inclusive capitalism” and urged the technology industry to set the highest possible ethical standards
September 25, 2018 25 Sep'18
Dreamforce 18: Salesforce vaunts Apple partnership and 'Customer 360'

As Dreamforce 2018 gets underway in San Francisco, Salesforce trumpets a partnership with Apple, a customer 360 service, and an upgrade to its MuleSoft “Anypoint” platform
September 14, 2018 14 Sep'18
How SAP is riding on Asia’s growth story

The enterprise software behemoth’s Asia-Pacific business is growing and believes its latest C/4 Hana suite is uniquely geared to the scale of the region
September 14, 2018 14 Sep'18
Adobe’s Vittal: AI ‘bigger than the web’, and in use at Swisscom

Adobe and one of its customers used the DMEXCO digital marketing conference and exhibition in Cologne to talk about artificial intelligence efforts and spell out what each sees as their value
September 05, 2018 05 Sep'18
Slow cloud take-up among IT execs limits joined-up customer experience

Cloud computing promises to declutter IT and link systems easily. Despite the benefits, adoption of the cloud for customer engagement remains low
September 03, 2018 03 Sep'18
CIO interview: Ian Cohen, global CIO, Addison Lee

Addison Lee’s global CIO is building a business strategy and ensuring the transport company has a flexible platform for growth
August 21, 2018 21 Aug'18
CIO interview: Celia Pronto, chief customer and digital officer, Casual Dining Group

Casual Dining Group’s chief customer and digital officer, Celia Pronto, is overhauling technology, consolidating IT and improving collaboration across its 300 restaurants
August 17, 2018 17 Aug'18
CIOs being welcomed back to marketing

The role of CIOs in shaping the technology buying decisions of marketers is being reinstated as more marketers realise the importance of integrating their services with IT systems
July 31, 2018 31 Jul'18
3 Hong Kong gears up for 5G with “epic” transformation

The Hong Kong telco is putting in an advanced technical architecture that will streamline and automate internal processes and IT as it prepares for the 5G era
July 20, 2018 20 Jul'18
Cloud sales stoke Microsoft’s strong growth

Microsoft says cloud-based Office products made a huge contribution to sales growth
July 19, 2018 19 Jul'18
SAP Q2 2018: Cloud revenue shows momentum, 600 more S/4 customers

SAP’s second-quarter results show cloud revenue now at one-fifth of total, indicating momentum. S/4 Hana customers now number 8,900
July 11, 2018 11 Jul'18
Oracle’s deal with Chile should go global

UK Oracle users may eventually see the ripple effect of a court ruling in a country almost 7,500 miles away
July 02, 2018 02 Jul'18
Singapore’s Fullerton Health gears up for the cloud

Private healthcare service provider Fullerton Health is moving business applications to Microsoft’s cloud services before rolling out data analytics and artificial intelligence to enhance operations and patient care
June 27, 2018 27 Jun'18
HSBC puts humanoid in New York branch

HSBC has put its first humanoid member of staff into a branch role in New York City
June 26, 2018 26 Jun'18
Liberty Global picks Cisco to transform customer service ops

Virgin Media parent enlists Cisco in a bid to transform its customer service experience across Europe
June 06, 2018 06 Jun'18
What SAP C/4 Hana means for the APAC enterprises

The cloud-based CRM suite could find takers, but it may not be enticing enough for Salesforce.com CRM customers that also run SAP’s ERP software to make the switch
June 06, 2018 06 Jun'18
Sapphire 2018: SAP will take over CRM market, says McDermott

SAP’s chief executive Bill McDermott tells 2018 Sapphire conference the supplier will storm the CRM market with its C/4 Hana business applications suite